Navy Pier Flyover faces major milestone Thursday

February 14, 2011 | by su-administrator

Active Trans is excited about a major milestone for the Navy Pier Flyover coming up this Thursday, as the project goes before the Chicago Plan Commission for approval. The Navy Pier Flyover is a project years in the making that addresses the confusing and dangerous stretch of Chicago’s Lakefront Trail from just north of Navy Pier south to where the trail is forced onto a tight sidewalk over the Chicago River. The Flyover is essentially a Lakefront Trail bridge that would pass over Grand Ave. and Illinois St. and provide a full-width trail over the Chicago River.

CDOT has secured funding for the first two of three phases of the project. This means that if the Chicago Plan Commission approves the project on Thursday, the city will begin asking for work proposals, and the project would move forward toward a construction start in spring of next year! Active Trans will continue advocating for funding to complete the project. While any project of this scale will result in inconveniences, we’re pleased that Chicago Department of Transportation is committed to keeping the Lakefront Trail open for the duration of the construction.

Active Trans has been involved in this project for about a decade, since the initial project meetings. We’ve worked with the city to provide input on the project concept and design, participated in public meetings with our members and worked to counter concerns about the project from nearby residents. For Thursday’s plan commission meeting, Active Trans has submitted a letter of support (see PDF download below) for the project, and we will have staff offer testimony at the meeting. We hope to see this important project proceed with approval from the plan commission.